-
9000 BCE
Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt
Farming became popular throughout the Fertile Crescent, reducing the need for hunting, allowing settled civilizations to start, and introducing the domestication of animals. This change from hunters and gathered to settlers and farmers was known as the Neolithic revolution. The settlement of the people also lead to the farming of grain and fermentation of beer. Hunting was no longer needed because unique vitamins that meat had was present in beer and the new drink was cleaner than water. -
4300 BCE
Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt
Mesopotamia was relatively flat and the farmers were prone to many invasions. Because they had no natural protection they decided to band together and create large and successful cities. Their success was due to the fact that farmers could safely farm a surplus of cereal grain which would eventually be turned into malt or beer. The people of the city were well protected and didn have to worry about being plundered. -
2500 BCE
Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt
The Pyramids of Giza were very labor-intensive to create and the workers had to be compensated somehow. That's where beer came in, despite a large number of workers, they manage to pay them. State workers found sleep in nearby towns and were paid three to four loaves of bread and four liters of beer. -
2350 BCE
Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt
In the region of Akkad, neighboring city-states would pay each other for the marriage of their children. Typically the groomś side of the family would pay the "Bride Price" in resources including beer. The "Bride Price" was the payment the groom's side of the family made to the bride's side of the family, giving them allowance to marry the bride. The marriage of separate families would strengthen the relationship between them and would eventually unite them (If the marriage went right). -
2100 BCE
Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt
Not only was beer used as a drink and a form of payment but it was also used medicinally. A Sumerian city of Nippur was among the first to discover that beer could be used to treat illnesses and pain. Beer was used as a mild sedative along with being the base for many other medical concoctions. Beer was less contaminated than water and many more health benefits over water. Soon the knowledge was spread and was used medicinally all throughout Egypt. -
400 BCE
Wine in Greece and Rome
Wine used to be mostly found in Greece but as popularity rose, so did demand, and this sparked up trade in the Mediterranean. The precious wine was transported in amphorae and (wine jar) and was shipped all of the Mediterranean Sea. Trade was booming and its extents reached all the way to southern France, Egypt, Crimean Peninsula, and the Danube region. -
400 BCE
Wine in Greece and Rome
When Rome was split into Eastern and Western Rome, Eastern Rome prospered while Western Rome suffered. The western half received constant attacks from Visigoths, and it eventually crumbled. Once the empire fell, the people of the empire became poor. The production of wine became too much and eventually, the Romanized Britons along with others reverted back to classic grain and beer. -
212 BCE
Wine in Greece and Rome
Romans sacked the Greek colony of Syracuse. Their sack was successful and they took the plundered goods but it did not feel like a victory. Cato the Elder said that they had not defeated the Greeks but instead the Greeks defeated them. This was due to the fact that the Romans were heavily influenced by the Greek culture and did many of the things the Greek did. They took after their art style and even started growing grape vines all around. Cato the Elder believed this made them look weak. -
146 BCE
Wine in Greece and Rome
Rome was catching up to Greece in the production of wine. The Romans had control of the region known as Oentria and that helped them gain a lot of knowledge about vines. They were increasing their amount of wine but it wasn't enough to beat Greece but things started to come together in the favor of the Romans. Carthage became weak and fell, and the Greek city of Corinth was sacked. This gave Rome the upper hand and a power switch happened. Greece was replaced with the new powerhouse, Rome. -
100 BCE
Wine in Greece and Rome
To become a wine powerhouse and meet the demand of the people, Rome would have to make more vine farms. To do this they would have to get rid of their existing grain farms and that's exactly what they did. They stopped all grain production and replaced the farms with the precious grape vine. although they cut the supply of grain they still needed it so trade sparked with Africa and they became the main source of grain for Rome. -
1500
Spirits in the Colonial Period
Spirits became an important part of slave trade and transportation from Africa to the New World. Brandy was the first Spirit to be used. It had many purposes but its main uses were as a strong alcoholic drink that wouldn't spoil along the journey, a trade offer for the slaves, and a payment for the crew member and canoemen. roughly 200 years later Brandy was replaced with Rum but they both had the same purposes. -
1511
Coffee in the Age of Reason
Coffee first became popular in Yemen but it soon spread to neighboring countries like Mecca. Coffee stayed in Mecca for around a year before it was put on trial by Kha'ir Beg. He believed that coffee had intoxicating effects and according to the Quran, intoxication was prohibited. The ban of coffee was proclaimed throughout Mecca and mayhem ensued. Coffee was burned on the streets, and customers and vendors were beaten as punishment. But within a few months, Beg's ruling was overturned. -
1557
Tea and the British Empire
Despite being noticeably more advanced than the Europeans, the Chinese still made exceptions in their trade. They would trade silk, tea, and porcelain for silver and gold but those were the only two commodities. The Chinese gave the Portuguese a trading post on the peninsula of Macao. Although it seemed nice it was actually to minimize contact. Although tea was one of the first things they traded, it wasn't until another century passed that tea became popular throughout Europe. -
Spirits in the Colonial Period
The first English settlers of Barbados set up sugar plantations and produced a lot of sugar and Cane Brandy. Cane Brady was a strong, alcoholic drink that was made from the leftovers of sugar making. Because it was so labor-intensive, the settler required more workers than themselves so they decided to use slaves. They got their slaves from Africa and used them to produce sugar and Cane Brandy. -
Spirits in the Colonial Period
Imports from Europe were needed to sustain the Pilgrim early colonies because the conditions in America were unlike Europe. Cereal grain was very difficult to cultivate and most other Mediterranean crops wouldn't even grow. The new settlers also had to fight climate and disease. The only reliable crop was tobacco but it wasn't enough to sustain a colony. So wine and spirits had to be imported for support. The settlers couldn't support themselves until late 1600's when they started producing rum. -
Coffee in the Age of Reason
Coffee was not adopted due to many reasons but they all had to do with coffee's association with Islam. Coffee's religious opponents believed coffee was evil. They believed Islam was the devil because they banned wine, the holy drink so they believed coffee was a drink from the devil. But Pope Clement VIII gave the coffee a try and was captivated by its taste. It was so delicious that within 50 years they went from complete neglection to a constant flow of coffee through trade and imports -
Coffee in the Age of Reason
As coffee became a more popular delicacy throughout Europe, Arabia wanted to stay on top of the monopoly so they decided to sterilize the beans so no one else could use them. Their plan was rendered useless when the Dutch managed to break the monopoly. They also managed to displace the Portuguese as the new dominant European nation in the East Indies. The Dutch also became the world's leading commercial power. -
Spirits in the Colonial Period
After constant taxing from Britain that inhibited the production of Rum, the colonists were furious. The British imposed taxation on Rum and molasses and as a response, the settlers developed a fire for revolution. The Colonists started the revolutionary war and it lasted from the 1770s to the 1780s. Once the British surrendered in 1781 and the colonies were independent, the United States of America formed. They were finally independent of the imposed taxes from Britain. -
Coffee in the Age of Reason
De Clieu was a French naval officer who was stationed in Martinique. He took on the task to introduce coffee to the West Indies and show that it can grow just aswell in the West Indies as it can in the East Indies. He had an associate cut off a branch from the royal tree. With that branch, he traveled over the dangerous sea which could potentially kill the branch but he made it. He planted it and in no time, he was making coffee exports to France from the West Indies. -
Tea and the British Empire
Tea's first appearance in Britain was in 1669 but that was from imports, this made tea very expensive. So by the early 1700s, Britain decided to set up direct trade with China. This reduced the price and increased the quantity of incoming tea. Imports from other European countries were banned and soon they had full control of the East Indies trade. The only thing in their way was the Dutch company. They fought many wars but the British came out on top giving them full control of trade. -
Spirits in the Colonial Period
Britains use of spirit cocktails like grog allowed them to be healthy and prevent scurvy. Grog had lemon or lime juice in it, making it a perfect counter for scurvy. The spirit also lasted long meaning they would have a lasting drinking source. Because the British used spirit cocktails, they had an advantage over the other naval fleets like the French and Spanish. The British had were healthy unlike the other fleets so they easily defeated them in battle, making them dominant over the ocean. -
Tea and the British Empire
The British East India Company held a lot of power and when they weren't making as much money as they wanted overseas, they got the government to intervene. The result was the Tea Act of 1773 This was supposed to stop the smuggling and create a monopoly for Company. It was also supposed to reduce the overall price of tea, but that's not what the colonist wanted. They felt restricted by the government so the colonists decided to protest, soon things escalated and the Boston Tea party happened. -
Coffee in the Age of Reason
The French helped the U.S.A during the revolutionary war but that caused a financial crisis within France. France was already struggling with the crisis but the assistance in the revolutionary was the cherry on top. Coffee houses that were once places of deep thinking and relaxation soon became places where people would plot for a revolution within France. Soon the plotting became a reality and a young lawyer by the name of Camille Desmoulins set the revolution into play. -
Tea and the British Empire
Because tea was so expensive and Britain was at the butt end of the trade (meaning it was unfavorable), they decided to do an illicit drug smuggling operating to improve the situation. Opium was very valuable in China and the British could easily get it from Bengal because of the monopoly they established. They then sold the opium at an auction in Calcutta. From there, the silver was sent back to London where they would use it in Canton to buy Tea. This system produced a favorable trade. -
Tea and the British Empire
Knowing their tea supply might run low, Britain sought a new solution. They discovered India would be a great place to cultivate tea. A little bit had already been growing in India and it was spectacular but when it came to mass-producing, they ran into a problem. Wild tea trees were hard to cultivate but Charles Bruce brought together Chinese tea workers and local farmers to solve the problem. Although there were a few bumps in the road, the company started making profits by 1851. -
Coca-Cola and the Rise of America
Despite the widespread of coke and the U.S.A's help during WWII, the French did not want them to build bottling plants throughout France. The French saw it as "coca-colonization" and they saw it as a threat to the wine and mineral-water industry. They created campaigns and protested the coca-cola capitalism and the U.S listened, but they were irate. People all over thought they were grateful and people even said to cut them out of the Marshal Plan but none of that actually happened. -
Coca-Cola and the Rise of America
The U.S.A was reluctant to join WWII but Japan dragged them in when they bombed Pearl Harbor. Furious at what they had done, the U.S sent over roughly 16 million servicemen to help fight the war. They were sent thousands of miles away but with the help and support of coke, the troops could feel at home. The soft drink brought up their morale and allowed them to get through the war. -
Coca-Cola and the Rise of America
Coca-Cola didn't do business in Isreal because the Isreali government wouldn't allow them to build a bottling plant so Coca-Cola backed away and did their business elsewhere. The Jewish community saw this as antisemitic and immediately started protesting coca-cola. The Arabic market started causing problems as well, so the company decided to drop their business in Arabia to please the Jews and stop the commotion. Pepsi saw an opportunity and took it, they set up bottling factories in Arabia. -
Coca-Cola and the Rise of America
Coca-Cola was battling Pepsi in popularity and worth and it was a close race. Coca-Cola saw an opportunity, they were going to become the official soft drink of the 1980, Moscow Olympics. This would have sent them way ahead of Pepsi, but President Jimmy Carter announced the boycott of the Olympics and ay association of the Soviet Union because they had invaded Afghanistan. -
Coca-Cola and the Rise of America
Coca-Cola wanted to dominate the Middle East for business but Pepsi already had established 5 factories. So during the Gulf War of 1991, Coca-Cola tried to gain popularity by sending over a refrigerated truck for the soldiers but Pepsi was already supplying them. During the Iraq war in 2003, many people were boycotting coca-cola and were making their own counterfeit brands. These newly emerged brands like Zam Zam Cola became very popular and the U.S lost almost all business in the Middle East.